Sic parvis magna: Greatness from small beginnings - Nathan Drake Support Thread

[DanganZilla5]

Who is Nathan Drake?
​

Nathan Drake is the protagonist of the Uncharted games. Along with Lara Croft, Nathan can be considered gaming's Indiana Jones. He is a thief and an adventurer searching for some of the Earth's greatest treasures, from the lost treasure of El Dorado, to Henry Avery's long-lost treasure. Nathan is known to be a very lucky unlucky person. He has encountered armies of pirates and mercenaries, survived an airplane crash, climbed up a train hanging off the edge of a mountain with a gunshot wound, took down powerful tyrants, and took part in many vehicle chases as well as dangerous situations that could rival an action scene in a movie. And yet despite all odds, Nathan has always gotten out of every situation no matter how ridiculous it is, and with a smile and a one-liner to boot.

Nathan Drake's Moveset Potential
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Nathan Drake is a skilled fighter who is proficient with guns and hand-to-hand combat. He has used a variety of firearms from pistols to shotguns, chainguns, RPGs, submachine guns, crossbows, and sniper rifles. But Uncharted is about the exploration and climbing as much as it is about combat. You could get real creative with Nathan such as:

• Having a boulder spawn in front of Nathan which acts as a barrier, but he could also push it if it's near a ledge so it can hit opponents on the way down. Or it could spawn behind Nate and chase him and from there Nate could push opponents toward the boulder or jump over it so it acts as a distraction.​
• Nate can use rope, either as a recovery or as a method of gaining air so he can pummel someone on the way down (Which is a mechanic introduced in Uncharted 4).​
• Nate could spawn a crate which acts as a barrier so he is able to shoot at opponents while characters with low projectiles won't be able to shoot back.​
• A rock platform is spawned and it can fall onto people or be used for navigating around the stage.​

As an adventurer, Nate could pull off a lot of different stunts and tricks, plus he has experience as a thief.

Why should Nathan Drake be in Smash?
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Uncharted started out with Drake's Fortune in 2007 and got 3 sequels plus a handheld game and a spinoff game on the PS4. It has become a very successful, beloved, and iconic series. Nathan Drake would play differently from any character already in the game and he is charming and has a lot of personality. It is true that Sony does own Uncharted and the series has never been on a Nintendo system, so the chances of Nate getting in the game are realistically low. But there is hope. If Nintendo and Sony miraculously collaborated for a character for this pass, Nathan would be one of the top Sony candidates as Uncharted is one of Sony's key franchises. And once again, Nate is funny and charismatic so he would fit right in with the roster.

Plus the music is great, check some of these out:

Uncharted Main Theme Montage
Uncharted 4 Main Theme
Drake's Fortune - Sir Francis Drake
Drake's Fortune - Search for El Dorado
Among Thieves - Reunion
Among Thieves - Tunnel Vision
Drake's Deception - Stowaway
A Thief's End - Cut to the Chase


Supporters

DanganZilla5
GoodGrief741
Janx_uwu
Sari​

 

[GoodGrief741]

Hell yeah, great games, great character. Count me in as a supporter.

 

[Janx_uwu]

****. There's like, three Drake threads. But this one has the most replies and is most recent, so I'll show my support here.
I hate that Sony characters get little to no support from Smash speculators despite the impossible happening many times prior. Sony can't be impossible to work with, I imagine.
Anyways, here's an image of Drake that'll probably be much better than the current "fake png"

 

[Sari]

Supporting as well. Some of my favorite memories of the early 2010's come from Uncharted 2's singleplayer and Uncharted 3's multiplayer.

 

[Sari]

Finished my article on Drake. Includes a full moveset and other things like costumes, music, etc.

Smash Underdogs #9: Nathan Drake

Welcome to the ninth episode of the Smash Underdog series! In these articles, I’ll be taking a look at some of the lesser talked about characters in Smash speculation. These characters aren’t as popular as big names like Waluigi or Isaac, but would be just as great additions with the content...

smashboards.com

Also here's the moveset I came up with for Drake, posted here for reference:

Moveset

Note: I tried to not to look at PlayStation All-Stars when making this moveset. This is not to say that I didn’t refer to it at all, but I only did so at the end of my original moveset which came strictly from me looking at the games themselves. In the end, only the down special was directly taken from that game.

View attachment 318129

Drake would have an above average jump height, being comparable to that of Samus. His size/proportions would be best comparable to that of Snake. However, Drake is easier to launch as he has a weight value of 90 (same as Marth/Lucina). His dash speed is also slightly below average, being roughly the same as Terry.

Drake can wall jump as he frequently jumps from wall to wall within the Uncharted games. Although the Uncharted games do not have an actual crawl button, I think it’d make sense for Drake to be able to crawl considering how you can do so while hiding behind cover. He'd do so by moving around while in a crouched position (though not completely flat on the ground like most characters).

In Uncharted, one of the main gameplay aspects is being able to climb and hang on just about anything. Because of this, I gave Drake an extended number of attacks to perform while on ledges or on ladders.


Normals:

Spoiler: Normal Attacks

Jab:

A three-hit combo consisting of a punch, a kick to the groin area, and a headbutt from Drake.


Dash Attack:

Drake does a strong dropkick attack. Based on one of the finishing moves that can be done when running towards an enemy.


Forward Tilt: Run-and-gun

Drake moves forward and fires 3 shots from his AK-47. If you hold down the A button, Drake will instead aim the gun behind him and open fire continuously while running away.


Up Tilt:

A quick uppercut from Drake’s left hand. One of his stronger normals.


Down Tilt:

This one is hard to properly illustrate (and not truly represented by the gif), but it would pretty much be Drake doing a long downward kick while crouching. This attack will instantly spike anyone hanging on a ledge. Partly based on the kick off move in multiplayer, which allows you to kick hanging enemies for a one-hit KO.

Grabs/Throws

Spoiler: Grabs/Throws

Forward Throw:

Drake quickly turns you around and kicks you in the back. Out of all of Drake’s throws, this one has the most launch power. Based on the stealth takedown in Uncharted 4 when attacking enemies while they’re standing near a cliff.


Back Throw:

Throws the opponent behind him using two arms. The enemy will be sent at a horizontal angle and will collide with anything they come across while flying (such as additional enemies or a wall). Based on the stealth takedown when peeking from around a corner.


Up Throw:

Drake lifts the opponent over his head and throws them up into the air. Based on the stealth takedown when attacking enemies that are at a higher elevation than you.


Down Throw:

Drake quickly puts you to the ground and snaps your neck (I mean, Snake’s pummel is basically a neck crack). Deals the highest amount of damage but has little to no knockback. This attack is similar to Snake’s down-throw except it all happens much faster.

Smash Attacks

Spoiler: Smash Attacks

Note: While charging all of his smash attacks (except for down smash), Drake will enter a crouching position before standing up to fire his weapon. This is to simulate hiding behind cover which you’ll be doing a lot in the Uncharted games.

Forward Smash: AK-47

Shoots 5 shots from his AK-47. The first 4 shots stun you and deal no knockback, while the final shot sends you flying. The longer you charge, the farther the bullets go.


Up Smash: Grenade Launcher

Drake shoots a grenade launcher into the air, which will deal great knockback to airborne enemies and whoever is on the ground when it lands. It is similar to Snake’s up-smash, however the grenade is shot at a more horizontal angle, meaning it won’t fall where Drake is standing.


Down Smash: Minigun

Drake pulls out a minigun and shoots multiple shots at his feet before turning around and doing the same behind him. The highest damage dealing of all of Drake’s smash attacks, however it is also the slowest.

Aerials

Spoiler: Aerials

Neutral Air:

Drake does a quick kick. It’s a weak normal but it comes out quick and has a decent amount of range. Based on the melee takedown when attacking enemies at a lower elevation.

Forward Air:

Drake slams downward with his right fist. This attack has a sweet spot which will spike the opponent. Based on the aerial takedown in Uncharted 4.


Back Air:

Drake fires a Micro - 9mm behind him. Bullets travel in a fairly short range.


Up Air:

Drake does an upwards swing with the butt of his AK-47. Covers the top half of Drake.


Down Air:

Drake slams both of his fists downward. Spikes the opponent when hit with the sweetspot, which is much larger than that of the forward air. Based on the aerial takedown in Uncharted 4 when attacking enemies directly below you.

Special Moves

Spoiler: Special Moves

Neutral Special: Pistol

For his neutral special, he wields a... .45 Defender pistol. This firearm has 8 bullets that can be fired to deal a decent amount of damage and knockback. Drake will reload the weapon once you run out of bullets or stop firing.

If you hold the B button, you can move forward and even backwards while shooting. So for example if I’m facing the right and I hold the B button, I can move to the left while continuously shooting to the right.

Additionally, Drake can fire this weapon while hanging on a ledge by pressing B. Doing so will have Drake lean forward over the ledge and shoot. More on ledge attacks in the ledge section.


Side Special: Propane Shoot

This special move incorporates propane tanks which are a common throwable item in Uncharted 2 and 3. Press side + B and Drake will throw a propane tank. The tank will travel in an arc until it hits the ground where it will stay. At any point during the tossing and the landing, if Drake presses side + B again then he’ll quickly pull out his AK-47 and shoot it so it explodes. The explosion deals high knockback making this a reliable killing move especially handy for off-stage enemies. If there is a platform/obstacle between Drake and the tank, the bullet will just hit that and only deal about 2% damage. On a very rare occasion, Drake may say “I love the smell of propane in the morning” after killing an enemy with this move, which is a quote he says in Uncharted 3.


Up Special: Grappling Hook

For his recovery, Drake would use the grappling hook introduced in Uncharted 4. Like with Joker’s grappling hook, it can latch onto any ledge so that you can recover with it. Unlike Joker’s grappling hook however, there are a few differences:

• You don’t latch onto the ledge as quickly as Joker’s up special, as there is a slight delay when Drake throws the hook.
• Instead of immediately snapping to the ledge, you can choose to hang onto the hook by not pressing any buttons. This will result in Drake swinging to the other side to which he can jump across. He will have increased acceleration upon the first swing, allowing for great travel distance and some unexpected takedowns.

Down Special: Cover

Upon using this move, a concrete barrier will appear in front of Drake and he will hide behind it. To leave the barrier, either jump or use your down special again. If used in the air, nothing will appear and Drake will do a brief quick comical falling animation before returning to regular freefall.

While hiding behind the barrier, your controls become the following:

• B = Shoots AK-47 shots over the barrier. While holding B, you can move up and down to adjust your aim.
• A = Whack opposite site with the butt of the AK-47.
• Left or Right = Vault over to the opposite side of the barrier.
• Left/Right (direction that Drake is on) + B= Stealth grab, a powerful melee grab that deals about 40% damage.
  • So if Drake is on the left side, you would hold left and press B to use this attack.

The barrier can be destroyed by being attacked as it has an HP of 16 (the same as Steve’s stone blocks). The barrier will also slowly crumble once Drake decides to leave it and move elsewhere. If the barrier is destroyed then Drake will have to wait for 5 seconds before being able to use it again. However, it is important to note that the barrier will stay standing forever as long as Drake stays with it.


Final Smash: Thief’s Plunder
Spoilers to the final boss of Uncharted 4

Spoiler

Drake pulls out a sword and does a quick slash. Whoever is hit by the slash will be put in a cinematic of being trapped in a burning ship. Drake will say a smart quip (just think of any crushed related pun), then he’ll hit a lever which will result in a giant trove of treasure falling onto the enemies and sending them flying.

Ledge/Ladder Attacks (Drake Exclusive)

Spoiler: Ledge/Ladder Attacks

Normally I wouldn’t have a section for things like ledge or ladder attacks. However since Uncharted heavily revolves around climbing objects, I think it’d be best for Drake to be exceptionally skilled with these attacks and even have a few additional ones.

Ledge Attacks
Drake would have two ledge attacks: one by pressing A like usual, and another by pressing B. Both of these ledge attacks are very unique as Drake does not have a regular getup attack.

Ledge Attack (A):

This would act as the standard ledge move and serve as the substitute to the average getup attack. It is a command grab move where Drake grabs the unfortunate sap who is standing above him and then throws them downwards off-stage. In both the singleplayer and multiplayer of the Uncharted games, this move instantly kills the opponent and they fall directly below Drake.

I’d personally prefer if this move throws the opponent directly under Drake as it would feel more satisfying and is more true to the games. However for the purpose of balancing it might be better suited if the opponent gets launched horizontally behind Drake when thrown. Regardless, this move would have a lot of endlag if Drake misses his grab so it’s not a move to be spammed a million times. It also means that another Drake can easily kill someone who messes up this grab by using down tilt.

Ledge Attack (B):

This would be a continuation of Drake’s neutral special. Drake can still use his pistol even while hanging on a ledge. The shots would be fired directly horizontally slightly above the ground.


Ladder Attacks
Drake would have two additional tracks to perform on ladders: on while holding up and pressing B, and another by holding down and pressing B.

Up + B:

Drake reaches upwards and grabs whoever is above him. They are then flung downward as if they have been spiked.


Down + B:

Drake does a vertically long kick below him using one leg. This attack will always spike the opponent no matter what.